As we end this year and look forward to the new year, one thing that has been on my mind is intercession, and just how crucial and desperately needed it is. Intercession is such a vital ministry for believers everywhere, and it should be accorded the value and priority it truly deserves.

Ephesians 6:18 (NLT) encourages us to “Pray in the Spirit at all times and on every occasion. Stay alert and be persistent in your prayers for all believers everywhere.”

Similarly, 1 Timothy 2:1 (NLT) says, “I urge you, first of all, to pray for all people. Ask God to help them; intercede on their behalf, and give thanks for them.”

Samuel Howells notes that “Intercessory prayer means becoming responsible for a particular situation, individual or group, as the Holy Spirit gives a burden, and continuing to carry that burden until it is lifted.”

One thing that has been re-emphasised in my life recently from praying with other people, and from sharing my challenges with others who in turn share theirs, is just how much people are going through. The variety of ways in which the devil inflicts pain, suffering, turmoil on people is utterly heart breaking. 1 Peter 5:8 (NASB) reminds us to “be of sober spirit, be on the alert. Your adversary, the devil, prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour.” Remember Job 2:2? “And the LORD said to Satan, “From where have you come?” Satan answered the LORD and said, “From going to and fro on the earth, and from walking up and down on it.” The devil does not rest, he is very busy looking for people to mercilessly devour.

As such, how can we as the Church of God afford to sleep? As Jesus said to His disciples when He came to them and found them sleeping, “So, could you not watch with me one hour?” (Matthew 26:40). If the devil is very busy going to and fro prowling, we as Christians should be even busier going to and fro praying.

As believers, sometimes there can be a tendency to swing from one extreme to another. We read James 2:14-17, which says “What good is it, dear brothers and sisters, if you say you have faith but don’t show it by your actions? Can that kind of faith save anyone? Suppose you see a brother or sister who has no food or clothing, and you say, “Good-bye and have a good day; stay warm and eat well”—but then you don’t give that person any food or clothing. What good does that do?So you see, faith by itself isn’t enough. Unless it produces good deeds, it is dead and useless (NLT).”

As such, we rightly focus on serving our community, as this is vital and should never be neglected. Unfortunately, it sometimes means that we struggle to find a balance between praying and acting. We may have strong community outreach programmes in our churches, but weak prayer ministries, and this is dangerous territory. As Ephesians 6:12 reminds us, “For we are not fighting against flesh-and-blood enemies, but against evil rulers and authorities of the unseen world, against mighty powers in this dark world, and against evil spirits in the heavenly places” (NLT).

In Acts 6:1-7, we read about how The Apostles in the early church solved this problem. As part of the solution, verse 4 reminds us that “they devoted themselves to prayer and to the ministry of the Word”, while selecting trustworthy, Spirit-filled, wise people to serve the community. Praying and acting go hand in hand. We can’t neglect prayer, and we can’t neglect acting. There is a brilliant teaching on this which I would encourage us to listen to if we can (link here).

Prayer is vital as we seek wisdom and guidance on how to better serve our communities and show them what God is like. Sometimes we go through so much heartache when we rush to act without first being led by prayer. Acting without praying can be like buying someone a very expensive gift which looks great on paper, but which the recipient actually hates. It may have cost us a lot of time and money, but sadly is of little use to the recipient.

On the other hand, when our actions are fruitfully guided by prayer, it is like knowing just what someone wants, and blessing them with an incredible, thoughtful gift that is exactly what they needed and wished for. The truth is that nobody knows our communities better than God, nobody! Consequently, who can know the needs of our communities better than God? How can we then powerfully serve our communities without first going to God in prayer? This is why we need to prioritise intercessory prayer. Passion must be guided by prayer for it to be truly purposeful.

Our prayers should not just be restricted to our desires and those of our families and friends, but our cities, countries, our family of believers worldwide including persecuted Christians, our communities – including our church, street, workplace, schools, organisations we are involved with. God has placed us right where we are for various reasons, and I am certain that one of these reasons is to intercede on behalf of the places and communities we dwell in and are affiliated to. As Mordecai told Esther, “And who knows but that you have come to your royal position for such a time as this?” (Esther 4:14b, NIV).

1 Timothy 2:2 says “Pray this way for kings and all who are in authority so that we can live peaceful and quiet lives marked by godliness and dignity.” It is so easy to criticise our leaders, but I reckon it will be more effective if we spent the time we use to criticise them to pray for them instead. The Bible tells us that the authorities which exist are established by God (Romans 13:1-2; Daniel 2:21). It can be hard to swallow these Bible passages when we see the damage and pain that some rulers inflict on the people they are supposed to serve, and there are questions which we may not get answers to in this lifetime. But God does tell us to pray even for our enemies (Matthew 5:44). Even when the Israelites demanded for a king which ended up causing all sorts of problems, Samuel said, “far be it from me that I should sin against the LORD by failing to pray for you.” (1 Samuel 12:23, NIV).

As such, what we can do is to continuously intercede and pray, to trust God, and when He calls us to act, then we do so. 1 Samuel 15 and 30 are examples of when God told people to act against rulers and injustice. A seemingly simple action driven by prayerful direction is far more powerful than a grand action driven by our own assessment of a situation, without any prayerful backing. Intercessory prayer can go where human actions cannot even dream of entering. As Richard Halverson observes, “Intercession is the truly universal work for the Christian. No place is closed to intercessory prayer: no continent, no nation, no city, no organization, no office. No power on earth can keep intercession out.” 

May it never be the case that what happened in Ezekiel 22:30-31 repeats itself, where God said, “I looked for someone among them who would build up the wall and stand before me in the gap on behalf of the land so I would not have to destroy it, but I found no one. So I will pour out my wrath on them and consume them with my fiery anger, bringing down on their own heads all they have done.” As I read that verse, I’m thinking ‘Not on my watch, by God’s grace!’

Before I wrap this post up, I should emphasise the good news that the devil is not the only one to-ing and fro-ing. 2 Chronicles 16:9b (BSB) reminds us that “For the eyes of the LORD roam to and fro over all the earth, to show Himself strong on behalf of those whose hearts are fully devoted to Him.” God is seeking those who will truly worship and serve Him (John 4:23), and intercede on behalf of our communities. The songs ‘Standing in the gap’ by Babbie Mason (link here) and ‘Somebody’s praying for me’ by Don Moen (link here) are such an encouragement. They remind us of how important it is to stand in the gap and pray for others, and just how much it can mean. I have certainly been blessed by people praying for me during trying times. As Charles Spurgeon said, “No man can do me a truer kindness in this world than to pray for me.”

Furthermore, we are called to be like Jesus. He is the one person we can emulate and never go wrong. And as Romans 8:34b (NIV) says, “Christ Jesus who died—more than that, who was raised to life—is at the right hand of God and is also interceding for us.” Romans 8:26 reminds us that the Holy Spirit intercedes for us as well. The Bible is also full of examples of people who stood in the gap and interceded on behalf of their communities and nations, from Moses to The Apostles. It is not always easy to take this step to be an intercessor, but I find that being part of a group and having a fixed time/day set aside for this can spur us on and enable us to be more effective and consistent.

I pray that as we look forward to the new year, we will go in with the mindset of intercessors, regularly communing with God in prayer. Fuelled by that, may we, through prayer and action, serve the people in the places where He has strategically positioned us: in our church, families, friendship circles, neighbourhoods, countries, continents, world. May we shine as lights in our communities, radiating God’s illuminating glory. May our prayers be like beacons that draw people away from harm and towards God, and enable them taste and see that God is good, and that His Kingdom is a good Kingdom, one full of righteousness, peace and joy in the Holy Spirit.

Image source here.